Poltimore House

Last month I revisited Poltimore House & Grounds, a derelict building on the outskirts of Exeter that is gradually being restored while fundraising happens. Poltimore House has changed hands a number of times, starting off as a school and becoming a hospital and psychiatric hospital in later years, but it's special to me because my Mum was born there (when it was a hospital, just to clarify...).

I love exploring old and abandoned buildings, the architecture and detail is breathtaking, there's so much more character than modern buildings and it makes me sad and happy to see them. I visited the house for the first time a couple of years ago, so it was great to see how the restoration is coming along. For £10m the house can be fully restored, so all I need to do now is win the big bucks on the euromillions and give them a hand, I can dream anyway. It's a gorgeous building and I really hope that one day it will be finished, it would be such a shame for such beautiful ceilings to go to waste.

To the side of the house is the old chapel, which has been restored to it's former glory, with a modern twist. I loved that the pathway was lined with hydrangeas, they're so beautiful and summery, the variations of colour are fantastic. Our main reason for visiting was to go to Crikey It's Vintage, sadly the weather had sent most of the traders home but there were still a few classic cars dotted around, I'm a sucker for old cars.

Sarah